Friday, December 21, 2012

I didn't realize this but Newcastle, the makers of a pretty good brown ale, have a seasonal beer. I unwrapped it as Day 20 of the Beer Advent. It is called Werewolf and it had some hair to it for sure.

This was a strange flavor. I drank it and with every sip thought, "Do I like this?" Ultimately the answer was no. It didn't have anything about it that I would consider good. Apparently other reviewers agreed with me because most reviews online aren't favorable. It has a bite to it that you get after each sip that is slightly bitter, but also leaves an unpleasant aftertaste.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Back for another round, Day 19 of the Beer Advent is the Real Ale Rio Blanco Pale Ale. I already wrote about this way back on Day 3.

It was still pretty good last night.

In addition to this, I also decided to drink some Shiner Cheer. Shiner cheer is a seasonal Christmas Beer that Shiner puts out. It is infused with Peach and Pecan and makes a very good fruitier option. This really fits with the season and the phrase "May your days be merry and bright...and your beer be cold" really fits it.

Day 18 brought joy to my beer fattened face. Honestly, I saw my favorite red and yellow cap poking out of the wrapper for a week now and knew I had this to look forward to.

Shiner Bock beer is my favorite beer ever, in the world. I love the flavor, the color, and even the packaging brings warmth to my heart. I have toured the brewery, visited the small town that it sits in, and own numerous Shiner related products.

My ice chest is a Shiner, I have glasses, coasters, and koozies that are Shiner, and I made damn sure we served Shiner at my wedding.

I even have a Shiner shirt that looks like a delivery guy shirt and my eye doctor asked if I had been out delivering before coming in. I love this beer with a passion. If you haven't had Shiner Bock, you are missing out on a treat.

Day 18 of the Advent has by far been the worst beer. I am always iffy on IPAs and after reading the intent of this beer on the Lagunitas Brewing website, I should have known instantly that I wasn't going to enjoy this beer.

They describe this as "Kinda like our IPA on steroids" which means that IPA taste but more disgusting. I drank this with dinner and every sip was a slap at the back of my tongue. I almost poured it out but I powered through. Another quote from their website says, "Flavor so hoppy it threatens to remove the enamel from your teeth." How is that appetizing.

Maybe IPA fan will love this but I hated it, and I don't hate beer. Even Diana appoligized for this one.

Day 16 of the Beer Advent was a Victory Prima Pils. I read up on this beer after drinking it. It has some heavy awards going for it and I thought it was pretty good.

You don't see too many Pilsners on the market that are Microbrew. This one was clean, crisp and had good flavor. The downside on a lot of these advent beers is there is only one, and I find I always enjoy the second beer more than the first. I liked Prima but I can't say I loved it. But I would definitely drink another.

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

We are getting to the last of the Real Ale brews with Day 15 of the Advent. This time it was the Brewhouse Brown Ale from the Real Ale Brewery in Blanco, TX.

This is a favorite of mine from Real Ale. This and the Fireman's 4 are my favorites from their brewery and this is a full bodied beer that has a great amount of flavor but not much of an aftertaste. It is slightly sweet and nutty. The only downside is it can be pretty filling. Since I know I will have one more of these in the Advent, I have something to look forward to.

Beer Advent Day 14 was another of the Spoetzl Brewing Company Shiner Beers, this time Shiner Black. This is the darkest beer Shiner brews and is the least favorite of their line for me.

I somehow forgot to take a picture of this in the glass but it lives up to the name of Black. About the only time I drink this is in the family pack or as a leftover from some party. It is good for a black beer but the flavor of burned wood just doesn't really do it for me. I am not sure what gives black beers that flavor but I get the same thing from Guinness as well.

If Black Lager is your thing, I would guess this is one of the better ones. It started as the Shiner 97 and was brought back as a full part of their line so it definitely has a following.

Monday, December 17, 2012

I went an played racquetball tonight and had a couple of Miller Lites before drinking Day 13 of the Beer Advent. I may have messed up my pallet.

I unwrapped a Brooklyn Oktoberfest and honestly can't recall much flavor from it. When I saw it was an Oktoberfest, I expected a lot of malt and a strong hops but it wasn't there for me. I think I may have done this beer a disservice and may need to try another one to really get a feel for if it is any good. But it is brewed out of New York, which has been a rarity on the Advent so far.

Day 12 of the Beer Advent was the first Amber beer out of Hood River, Oregon.

I have never heard of the Full Sail Brewing company but they make a damn fine Amber ale. This is actually the flagship beer of the Full Sail brewing company and I can see why. This had a great color and flavor to it. It actually is brewed with Chocolate hops and that hint is there when you drink it. I am hoping for more samples from Full Sail because if they do other beers with the same quality as their amber, I am sure to be pleased.

Today was the first repeat in my Advent. I didn't bother taking a glass shot on this one but that tricky Purple label was unwrapped on Day 11. You can read the original time I drank this as it was 5 days previous.

Day 10 of the Advent proves that IPA is a huge component of the craft beer market. This is another in a long line of good India Pale Ale's that Diana got for me.

I liked this IPA but it seems the reviewers are much more of a fan. This gets a high B to a low A rating on a lot of beer sites. It is another Oregon brewery called Deschutes Brewery. When I started this, I had no idea that Oregon was such a huge micro brew center but about a third of these beers originates from that area.

The flavor on this one was a little bit much for my taste. I feel like IPAs get a bit of an aftertaste and depending on the way this is brewed, it can be a turn off for me. I doubt I will search this out. If you like IPAs, give it a try but I can't say I would drink another one.

I have been lazy but have been drinking my beers and taking my pics. Day 9 of the Beer Advent is the Avery Brewing Company White Rascal White Ale. Duncan opened this beer with his eyes.

When I poured this, I judged it first by the color, since it was a white beer and all. The taste was slightly sweet and light. Overall I liked this a lot and plan to get more of it. Even after days of other beers, this one keeps coming back as one I want to drink more.

When it comes right down to it, unfiltered wheat is usually a favorite of mine. I like the process that goes into swirling the bottle and getting every last bit of the wheat out of the bottle. And the fruit that some people add to wheat beer to give it the citrus flavor is already part of the flavor of this brew.

Monday, December 10, 2012

We are back in the Shiner brewery for one of their Brewer's Pride batches for Day 8 of the Beer Advent. Shiner does something extremely interesting and also frustrating in that it sells a Family Pack. This is a pack of 6 of their beers, five of them that are on the market, as well as one Family Pack special that isn't sold outside of it.

So the Brewer's Pride selection running now is the Shiner Prickly Pear. I loved this beer, which means I am screwed for ever getting it again. Getting a hold of more than one of these is impossible without buying a Family Pack.

This is a delicious little beer that has a subtle flavor that is sweet without tasting like hard cider. I can see this going well with dessert. It wasn't bitter at all so there isn't going to be a flavor conflict and it is just sweet enough that I could drink a few of these without getting overly tired of it.

So the weekends are more difficult for posting but that didn't mean I didn't drink this weekend. Day 7 took us back to the Left Hand Brewing Company for their 400 Pound Monkey India Pale Ale.

This was different. It wasn't necessarily great but overall was a good IPA. It has a good color to it that was more golden than some IPAs I have had. It also had a small sweetness to it that made it good for sipping rather than gulping.

I am becoming a fan of the Left Hand Brewery and I am hoping Diana put more of these in the Advent.

Friday, December 07, 2012

We are already back to a Real Ale brew for day 6 of the Badvent calendar. This time I got the Real Ale Full Moon Pale Rye Ale. I liked it but couldn't tell you the difference between a Rye or regular Pale Ale. My guess is that one has rye in it but I don't know why that matters.

This may seem stupid but the label really bothers me on this beer. All Real Ale brews use the same label but when I opened the wrapping on this one, my first thought was, "Crap, its grape flavored" and I can't seem to get past it. It wasn't grape flavored but that bottle is just not right.

All things being equal, I preferred the standard Pale Ale offering from Day 3 to this beer. It was still tasty but not to the level of a regular Pale Ale.

Thursday, December 06, 2012

Last nights beer was a Vaughn household staple, Shiner Blonde. My beer of choice is Shiner Bock but I am pretty friendly with the entire Shiner family of beers. I am frequently seen with a Shiner Blonde when I want a Shiner with a bit less weight to it.

I took this pic and then realized Hazel seemed to be really eying my beer.

That caused me to see if Duncan could be tricked into standing on it.

You can't go wrong with Shiner. All of their beer is delicious and inexpensive and it is locally brewed in Texas so that makes it all the more special. This beer has a clean flavor and makes very little indigestion when you drink a few too many, which I am known to do.

Wednesday, December 05, 2012

Day 4 of the Badvent, was Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat beer. I love Boulevard beers and randomly get a hold of their sampler packs and am never disappointed. I recently tried this beer a couple of weeks ago and was happy to see this label when I unwrapped Day 4.

I love wheat beer. I like how it has a slight hint of citrus but don't think it necessary to include an orange in it. That ruins the flavor for me. But it is heavy so drinking more than 3 of these can really fill me up.

The Boulevard websites states that "this easy drinking American-style wheat beer has become our most popular
offering, and the best-selling craft beer in the Midwest." From the taste of it and the other offerings I have had, I would say it is at least in the top two favorites that they brew.

Tuesday, December 04, 2012

I played over an hour of Racquetball which means I went out for drinks afterward. So coming home tonight after a couple of Miller Lites, I was pleasantly surprised with Day 3 of the Beer Advent. I opened up a bottle of Real Ale Brewing Rio Blanco Pale Ale.

I have had this in the past and have actually visited the Real Ale Brewery in Blanco Texas. The facility is pretty small but an awesome stop if you are in the Austin area. This was my desert for the evening and was a very tasty nightcap after my dinner of Miller Lite and buffalo wings.

Three days down on the Advent Calendar. Two awesome new beers, and a familiar face is a good way to start the month.

So for Day 2 of the Beer Advent, I opened up a bottle of Left Hand Breweries Milk Stout.

It wasn't like any stout I have ever had. And I think that is because it has Milk Sugar in it. I have no idea what that is but it cut the burned flavoring most stouts have and the flavor was much better.

The downside of this beer advent is that if I like a beer, i only have one. I could see drinking two or three of these with a dessert as it worked well with something slightly sweet.

Saturday, December 01, 2012

In the time I have been away, I have had many things happen, one of which is that Diana and I decided to begin attending church. I have never been religious and at times have denied the existence of a God of any kind so for me to actively pursue any type of religion is a major change in protocol. I tell you all of this to witness to you the greatness that is Advent. Oh, I mean Beer Advent.

If you are not familiar with the Advent calendar, it is that weird box you see for $1 at most stores and has little windows with candy in them. You open one each day starting on December 1st and it leads up to the 24th, which is the last day of Advent. Well, I read this awesome article and it had this amazing idea to do this with beer and I asked Diana to make me a Beer Advent calendar and she rocks and did.

Behold the greatness and mystery of my Beer Advent Calendar. It is glorious.

Advent started today so I unwrapped my first beer. This ended up being a Mirror Pond Pale Ale brewed out of Bend, OR by the Deschutes Brewery.

I don't review beers for much more than, "Did I like the Taste?" and "Would I drink another?" With that in mind my official opinion is Tastes Good and Yes I would. I am hit or miss on Pale Ales but this one was crisp but didn't leave a nasty aftertaste in my mouth.

I love my wife for many reasons but the fact that she would go to this much trouble just because I asked her to is very sweet and incredibly awesome of her. I wonder what Day 2 will be.